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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tube · tear · last · content · bound · ground

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tube — a container
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bound — certain
  6. last — finally
  7. bound — tied together
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — to rip
  10. ground — a position
  11. ground — crushed
  12. last — to go on
  13. tube — the underground
  14. content — happy
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. ground — the earth
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. content — the amount

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com